Melissa Young of Des Moines made the most of her nine-month Project SEARCH internship with Hy-Vee. She is known for her ambition, work ethic and ability to step in to help any department at the store.
Melissa earned high praise from her Project SEARCH instructor and the staff at the Windsor Heights Hy-Vee. Her instructor, Jen Cattell, says Melissa made large personal strides in 2014 as she volunteered for additional work in several departments.
“She’s pretty popular because she does an amazing job,” says Cattell.
Melissa also stood out because she maintained a perfect attendance record during her internship.
The Windsor Heights store hired Melissa for a full-time job following her graduation from the Project SEARCH program in November 2014.
Project SEARCH is a vocational training program designed to help people with disabilities secure competitive employment. Since its inception, Project SEARCH has grown from a single program site to more than 300 host business in 42 states and six countries. In March 2013, Goodwill of Central Iowa partnered with Hy-Vee to develop Project SEARCH at Hy-Vee, a training program designed for people with disabilities who are interested in working in a retail setting.
Nine individuals, including Melissa, graduated the training program this year, and seven of them were offered paid positions at Hy-Vee.
Melissa is featured in February on our 2015 calendar. The calendars are for sale in our stores for $5.
